Today I’m lucky enough to have a great paying job that allows me to make my monthly student loan payments – which are not small. They almost equal my rent payment which also isn’t small since I live in a great condo in downtown Fort Lauderdale a mile from the beach. Despite being able to make my loan payments, I’m always looking for ways to help ease them.

Most of the programs I have come across aren’t really meant to help. They encourage you to enroll in programs that reduce your payment but increase your interest rate – in other words they increase your debt under the guise of helping you. The only thing I’ve really come across that helps is SmarterBucks.

You know all those silly rewards and cash back programs you’re always hearing about? Well there’s now one where the reward is actual cash that is used to make a student loan payment for you.

SmarterBucks: Earn Rewards on Everyday Purchases to Pay Student Loans!

SmarterBucks has an online market place set up like Amazon.com but all purchases made through the SmarterBucks marketplace earn you a cash back % that you can then apply towards a student loan payment! The percent back is typically in the 2-4% range for each purchase (it depends on the brand you’re purchasing from).

This is seriously a win-win! You make the purchases you would be making anyways and you get a % back to use towards your student loan payment – it’s beautiful!

An example of how the SmarterBucks marketplace + SmarterBank help you pay off student loan debt faster.

SmarterBank: A Bank That Helps You Pay Student Loans!

What’s even better is the company behind SmarterBucks started their own FDIC-insured bank, SmarterBank, which allows you to earn rewards on every purchase you make using their debit card!

You can earn 0.5% back for purchases under $100 and 1% back for purchases over $100. All you have to do is process your payments as credit so its runs over the Visa network instead of entering your pin number and processing it through the bank network. No worries though, even when you run the card as credit you’re really still just debiting the money out of your bank account.

Here’s how they explain it:

You may not realize it, but you often have a choice in how a transaction is processed when you use your debit card to buy things. To receive SmarterBucks on a purchase made with a SmarterBank Visa® Debit Card, it must be a signature or non-PIN purchase. A non-PIN purchase is made when you do not enter your PIN or when you sign for a purchase instead. Most online purchases, telephone purchases, and restaurant purchases are automatically non-PIN. When you make a purchase at a store, to make sure it is a non-PIN purchase, you should choose “credit” instead of “debit” at terminal at the register. Selecting credit instead of debit means your transaction is processed over the Visa® network so you earn full benefits, protection, and rewards. Even though you pick credit, as long as you are using your debit card, the money still comes out of your bank account, so you are NOT going into credit card debt.

I just signed up for a SmarterBank account. According to their site it takes 24 to 48 hours for your account to be approved (you have to go through an identify verification process). Once approved the bank sends you a welcome kit and your shiny new debit card.

I can’t wait to start earning cash back that can be used towards my student loan payments with SmarterBank and SmarterRewards! If you have student loan debt I seriously encourage you to think about signing up too – it’s completely free!

Oh, and your parents and friends can sign up for a SmarterRewards account too and their rewards from purchases can help you make those student loan payments too! They just have to connect their account to yours. How cool is that?

She has amazing style, always seems gracious and funny in interviews and is never caught up in Lindsay Lohan type gossip. Anne is simply amazing.

For even more pictures of the gorgeous Miss Hathaway check out our Anne Hathaway is OnTheWayUp board on Pinterest!

There was one girl in particular who really drove me crazy. She thought a lot about herself even though there wasn’t a lot to think about. She was a little bit easy because it fed her self-esteem and she was a little bit dumb because she couldn’t help it. In other words she was rude and classless and stupid and she really thought she was better than me.

A couple of years ago she friended me on Facebook and I couldn’t help but notice that she hadn’t changed one bit. Except she has two kids with a deadbeat dad that she has an on-again, off-again relationship with.

Oh, and she loves her kids sooo much that she has to post updates about it everyday. But then she’s quick to leave them at home so she can go out drinking and partying because she “needs it” or “deserves it.” I’m not against parents being able to have a life, but she’s a bit excessive and dramatic about the whole thing.

It seems to me that a women who would wear a shirt that says “I love my baby even though the daddy is an ass hole” is the kind of woman that shouldn’t be allowed to have children. I mean, I know I shouldn’t pass judgement but that kind of shirt says a lot about a person’s maturity level, and for the sake of the kids I just have to feel bad.

It looks like that middle school mentality was never left behind.

And I know, I’m kind of dumb for dedicating a whole post to this girl …and I should feel bad for her, but I don’t.

I guess we both have a little growing up to do.

Myrta really shines next to the dark matte look of Status Update and the color combo is so perfect for October (think Halloween colors).

The one thing I’ve noticed is that Zoya’s Myrta seriously outlasts Color Club’s Status Update. This week I didn’t touch up any of my nails to see what they would look like by the end of a seven day period. Note: I did not add a top coat over either of the polishes since I wanted to see how they hold up on their own.

Zoya’s Myrta (orange) nail polish holds up much better than Color Club’s Status Update nail polish after 7 days.

The Zoya polish (orange) held up almost perfectly. Aside from it being obvious that my nails have grown since I painted them last my Zoya nails are still rockin. I wish the same could be said about my Color Club (charcoal) nails. They are struggling real hard.

I can barely look at those chipped nails – what a disaster!

This won’t stop me from wearing Color Club nail polishes – especially Status Update; however, it does make me feel more affectionate towards Zoya polishes. While I’ll never give up my Sally Hansen Insta-Dry polishes (they’re long lasting too – and only $4!) I can see why Zoya is worth the extra money as far as mid-tier and luxury nail polishes go.

I’ve got a small 401K and roth IRA helping my cause, but really with the amount I put into them I won’t be retiring off of those savings any time soon. I think my IRA made me all of $72.00 last year – whoo, I might faint from that return on my investment. Then again, that’s $72 I didn’t have before, and I do love earning money from doing nothing.

I spend a lot of money at restaurants

Back to my bank statement though. I was just scrolling through my purchases and couldn’t help but notice I seem to spend the most amount of money on eating out at restaurants.

With each debit from my account I recall a fun dinner with my girlfriends and a delicious dinner with my boyfriend that we split. Those are events I don’t want to cut out of my life but that money would be better spent elsewhere.

Why is it that most outings with friends seem to revolve around eating out? Even if we ultimately plan something else – like shopping or seeing a movie, eating dinner out ends up part of the plan. I’m guessing it’s because 1. Food tastes good and 2. Sitting down for a meal allows for the right amount of time for catching up. Unfortunately most of these food outings end up costing $15, $20, $30 a pop (depending on if drinks, desserts or appetizers are served).

Then there are those nights when my boyfriend and I get home from work late and just want to order pizza – that’s another $20.

Say I only eat out once a week at $20/dinner and order-in a pizza once a week (which we do – I know it’s unhealthy), I’ve spent $160 on food! The thing is, you know there will be weeks that you eat out more than once a week (or at least I will) so I actually spend more than that on restaurant food! Wahhh!

Setting an “eating out” budget for the month

I think what I’ll need to do is set an eating out budget. Say $100 for the month.

That comes out to roughly five meals out per 30 days – just over one opportunity to visit a restaurant per week. That sounds reasonable. I can handle that!

What about you? Do you have an eating out budget? Do you spend too much money at restaurants?

(Image source: About.com)

Oh Christmas Tree, Oh Christmas Tree!

My boyfriend and I have been together for almost eight years (our anniversary is next month). We’ve gone through eight holiday seasons as a couple, seven as a serious couple.

Kind of amazingly, our families – though from completely different parts of Florida– celebrate Christmas in the same city. That means each year my boyfriend and I are able to celebrate together and with our respective families.

Thanksgiving is a little bit different – we simply rotate whose family we’re going to spend it with. Last year it was with my family so this year we’ll be with his family.

Deep down I think we should be spending it with my family again this year because my grandfather is almost 90 years old and who knows if he’ll still be here next year, but I digress. It means a lot to my boyfriend’s father that we spend Thanksgiving with them every other year so we’ll do that again this year.

Not every couple has it so good. What do you do when you and your significant other get serious and the big holiday question comes up: whose family will you spend it with?

Tips for Spending Time with Both Families at the Holidays

Personally, the rotating years option has worked well in my relationship, and I would highly recommend it. Any un-selfish family would see how this a fair option. That’s not to say that you shouldn’t ultimately spend any time with the other person’s family during the holidays.

Perhaps you’ll spend the day after Christmas with the other family, or you’ll spend Thanksgiving with one family and Christmas with the other.

My boyfriend and I right before we left for the airport to see my dad, Christmas 2009.

If the two families live far from each other – especially if they are in different states, a nice option is to spend a few days with each.

For example there was a couple years where my dad’s work had him living in Georgia. During those years my boyfriend and I would spend Christmas Eve and Christmas Day with our families in Florida and then fly up to Georgia the day after Christmas.

There are a lot of options for working out the Two Families situation. Don’t fret or get into an unnecessary fight with your significant other over where to spend the holidays. Every great relationship is comprised of two people who understand what its like to compromise.

And as a bonus tip I would say not to let your parents influence your decision. You are an adult in an adult relationship and must learn to make decisions as a couple without unnecessary parental influence.

Scene from Confessions of a Shopaholic.

Set a Monthly Shopping Budget – and Adhere to It!

To help curb my erratic enthusiasm for clothes shopping I’ve set myself a $100 monthly budget. That means once a month I can spend $100 on new clothes and/or accessories and that’s it. I force myself to spend this $100 because if I don’t I know I’ll go crazy somewhere down the road.

Depending on where you shop, $100 can get you a lot or a little. When it comes to accessory buying I’ll usually just pop down to Target and comb through their cosmetic jewelry which ranges from $5 to $20+. The quality isn’t the best – a lot of the necklaces will wear out in just a couple of months, but for the price it’s not a bad deal.

When it comes to clothes for work I’m a Macy’s girl. My favorite brand is Bar III; their dresses can be a little pricey ($70/each) depending on what you’re used to paying, but they are high quality.

Resell or Donate Your Old(er) Clothes

Now that I’m bringing in new clothing items and accessories on a routine basis I have some older items I need to phase out. For quite a few years now I’ve been a fan of dropping my clothes off at Plato’s Closet where they give you cash on the spot for the clothes they think they can resell.

When I was in college Plato’s Closet was precisely how I paid for a lot of my new clothes. Now that I’m a bit older I’m more keen on donating the clothes to Good Will. I don’t really need the extra cash but I do need the extra good karma. Both are great options though!

How do you manage your clothes shopping budget? Do you have one?

Seasons one, two and three were really well done. The drama kept me on edge and the right couples ended up together and everything was right in the world. I seriously LOVED Blair + Chuck as partners in crime. I mean, who didn’t?! And for me, Gossip Girl just isn’t Gossip Girl when Dan and Serena aren’t together. The show just feels off balance. As much as I love Blair + Chuck I really need Dan and Serena to be a couple; they balance each other out so well!

…Or at least they used to. I guess with Dan now having his own conniving/scheming side that’s not as true as it used to be. Ah, well.

Season 6 is now underway and here’s the scoop (*spoiler alert*):

Blair + Chuck

I’m glad to see B & Chuck taking a step towards each other in season 6. Last season I was getting beyond frustrated with B + Dan. That’s just a coupling that felt so wrong.

I hated that Dan planted a little seed of doubt in B’s mind this season by saying she thinks she has an epic love but really just has excuses. Shut up, Lonely Boy and get over it.

B is all-in and so am I!

Dan + Georgina

Dan spending the summer with Georgina plotting against the Upper East Side. Hmmm. Just goes to show how much a person can change over the course of six seasons. The old Dan would never have teamed up with Georgina.

The trickiest thing Old Dan (should we call him Brooklyn?) would have done is pretend he was teaming up with G and then run off to Serena and tell her all about it. Then the Upper East Side + Dan would team up to take G down. You know its true.

It’ll be interesting to see how this plays out. I wonder if Lonely Boy remembers how G pretended to love him all those seasons ago just to fuck with S?

Serena

This girl is always full of drama, always falling off the straight and narrow path and always ending up back in Manhatten the same old person she was before. I feel like Serena has no depth.

At the beginning of Season One I thought she was the bad girl gone good. She started dating Dan and everything was great, but she always ends up back to the bitchy drama queen who sometimes gets stabbed in the back which makes everyone love her again.

I’m over Serena.

Chuck Bass + Bart Bass

Whenever Bart Bass is in the picture the show gets good. His storyline is always compelling. He always has a secret and it’s always epic. I can’t wait to see where things go this season. And I seriously, seriously hope Chuck gets his revenge before the last episode … and then runs off into the sunset with B!

Nate

He hasn’t had anything interesting going on in a while. Even the Diana thing was kind of a bore.

Lily and Rufus (and Ivy)

Lily and Rufus are so completely uninteresting. The Ivy angle is just really weird and stupid. I did absolutely love Dan’s face after he walked in on Ivy and Rufus though: classic!

I think it’s obvious that Lily and Rufus belong together just like Dan and Serena do but I doubt either of these relationships will get tied up neatly at the end. I guess we’ll just have to keep watching Season 6 and see what happens!

What do you think about the new season of Gossip Girl? Leave a comment below! xoxo.

Sarah Michelle Gellar may have a new tv show out but she’ll always be Buffy to me. As a girl who grew up in the 90s obviously  I obsessively followed Buffy and her relationship with Angel. They were the edgy Bella and Edward before Twilight was even remotely a thing. They were cool.

SMG has had a lot of years in Hollywood to go bizerk but she remains as poised and awesome and classy as we would expect her to be!

It’s been a long time since the Buffy days but I still hold a special place in my heart for the seriously ass-kicking SMG.

For more pics of the best vampire slayer out there check out our Sarah Michelle Gellar board on Pinterest.

One of my favorite items to receive in my box is parfume samples. Not particularly because I love sampling new parfumes (though I do) but mainly because the samples are perfectly purse sized. What’s more – because they are super small – you can carry multiple of these little purse sized parfumes in your makeup bag without taking up a lot of room.

My makeup bag always has multiple parfume samples in it!

Before I started carrying around sample sized parfumes I used to buy one kind, in purse size (which is usually 0.5 oz) and keep that single scent until it was gone. That system wasn’t really bad but it’s not as awesome as being able to carry multiple scents. I now always have the perfect parfume for every occasion in my small makeup bag!

Birchbox is pretty good at sending enough parfume samples to keep me stocked up; however, they are not likely to send the same sample twice. That kind of sucks if you really like one particular scent – that’s what happened to me and twirl by Kate Spade. I used up my little sample quickly but really wanted another tiny bottle for my makeup bag.

Turns out you can buy sample sized parfumes online – and as you would imagine they are cheap! Just go to Amazon or eBay and you should be able to find samples of your favorite parfume. For example, on Amazon I can get a sample of Kate Spade twirl for under $3. Okay, so for the amount you get $3 is a little high, but if you hunt around you can definitely find cheaper samples.

I’m so happy I found this site – now I’ll always be able to order my perfectly on-the-go sized parfumes!

If you’re looking for some new scents to try, some of my favorites right now are: “Very Hollywood” by Michael Khors, “hello” by Prince Harvey and of course “twirl” by Kate Spade.

Enjoy your sample hunting!